A Spring Blossom
by ice23hot
Summary: Kristoff and Anna tell the trolls that they're expecting a new addition to the family.
1. Chapter 1

"Maybe this wasn't such a good idea."

"Last time I checked, you were the one who insisted we come down here, Kristoff. You can't turn back now."

"Yeah, but –"

"Are you saying you made me walk _all the way out here_ for nothing?"

"No, no. Fine. Just…stay behind me, and get ready to duck."

"Duck?"

They broke through the canopy of fir trees and stepped into a familiar clearing, where a seemingly innocent pile of rocks lay stagnant.

"Okay, I'm nervous now," Anna muttered, grabbing Kristoff's sleeve to keep him from advancing. She couldn't help but notice he looked slightly anxious too. He ran a hand through his hair and let out a sigh.

"I mean, they'll be _excited_, but I'm just worried that they won't let us leave," he said quietly, eyeing the rocks with apprehension.

Anna let go of Kristoff's sleeve and smoothed out her dress, jutting out her chin in fake confidence. "Here goes nothing." She cleared her throat. "H-hello? Bulda? Grand Pabbie? It's us. And by us, I mean me and Kristoff, which you probably know, but -"

The ground began to shake as the rocks leapt from their sleeping places, jumping and rolling and stretching as they awoke.

"IT'S KRISTOFF AND ANNA!"

Loud cheers sounded across the clearing as the little trolls greeted the couple with enthusiasm, pulling on their clothes and rubbing their heads fondly.

"Er – be careful –" grunted Kristoff, brushing an especially excited troll off of Anna's shoulders and shooting her an apologetic smile.

"My baby Kristoff!" The trolls parted to let Bulda through, and she waddled excitedly to her adopted son, who surprised her with a kiss to the forehead. "You two haven't seen us in far too long. What's the hold up? Too busy being in love? How's married life, hmm? Are you satisfying her, Kristoff?"

Kristoff's cheeks flushed. "I don't see how – "

Bulda continued. "I hope you've come with good news! Are you going to have another troll wedding ceremony? The last one was far too short, with far too few guests, am I right?"

The trolls sounded off in agreement. Anna tried to butt in. "Actually – "

"And the garments were nowhere near authentic! It's not my fault that we didn't have your _size_ –"

"We actually do have good news, but it's not that," said Kristoff loudly, taking one of Anna's hands in his. The clearing went silent. Dozens of stone faces looked up at the couple eagerly, their fire crystals glowing faintly in the dimming light.

Anna bit her lip and looked up at her husband with a shy smile. "We're – that is, I'm – well, kind of us -" Kristoff nudged her. Looking like she was going to burst, Anna let out a squeak of excitement. "We're having a baby!"

The trolls were quiet for a moment, and then erupted into cheers. Bulda was already blowing her nose loudly on a leaf as the others charged towards the expecting couple. Surprised by the great speed of the trolls, Kristoff threw an arm in front of Anna, but they merely rolled around them, positioned themselves in a circle, and began to sing. The smallest trolls handed flowers up to Anna, who blushed and took the humble offerings as trollsong filled her ears. Kristoff took a particularly pretty flower and tucked it behind Anna's hair before kissing her cheek, much to the delight of his troll family.

The singing and cat-calling stopped abruptly as another stone figure stepped into the throng. Grand Pabbie ambled slowly towards the center, his old eyes scanning the crowd. He stopped before the couple, and a small chuckle escaped his lips. He addressed Anna first, who stooped slightly to grasp his outreached hand.

"May your child grow healthy and strong within you, my dear."

Anna beamed. "Thank you, Grand Pabbie."

He turned to Kristoff, who had to bend farther than Anna to take the troll's wizened hand. "And you, my boy – May you be a kind and patient father to your son."

Kristoff's mouth opened and closed a few times. "Son?"

Grand Pabbie nodded, looking confused. "Yes, it's a boy. Did you not know?"

Kristoff shook his head, looking dazed. "She's only – well, she's not that far along…"

"A boy," Anna breathed. Obvious joy shone in her eyes as she squirmed excitedly underneath Kristoff's protective arm.

"You must bring him to me, first thing!" Bulda shouted. "I'm talking as soon as the little darling is born!"

"Well, maybe not that soon," Kristoff chuckled nervously. "But it – _he_ will come see you, for sure."

"Make sure of it."

Later that night, as they lay wrapped in each other's arms, the ice harvester and his princess found it a little harder to sleep knowing a little prince would soon join their family.

**I've had this idea in my head for a while, but I don't know if I'm quite happy with how it turned out. Anyway, thanks for reading! Reviews are MUCH appreciated!**


	2. Chapter 2

**I probably won't update this quickly in the future, but thanks so much for reading and reviewing!**

"Princess, slow down!" "Yes, I know, Princess! I've felt already."

This is what Anna had been hearing all afternoon, but the concerns of her peers had no effect on her. She skidded down the hallways, flashing a contagious smile as she slid towards Elsa's study. She came to a stop in front of the grand door and laid a hand on her swollen belly as she caught her breath. She was nearly four and a half months along, but was not yet at the point where she was constantly tired. In fact, she seemed to have more energy, if that was even possible for the quirky princess.

"Elsa! I have to tell you something!"

Moments later, the door opened and a familiar blonde head peeked out, looking at Anna with a mixture of concern and excitement. "What's wrong, Anna?"

"Nothing's wrong. Everything's _right_, in fact," Anna sighed happily, sashaying into the vast study. She bit her lip with excitement and took her sister's cool hand, placing it on her belly. "The baby's kicking."

Elsa's eyes lit up as her unborn nephew gave an obligatory nudge. "Oh…Anna, wow… That's incredible."

"Do you feel it?" squeaked Anna. Elsa nodded and let her hand fall.

"Has Kristoff felt it yet?"

Anna's face fell. "No. It just started a few hours ago, and he's not getting back until late tonight."

Elsa smiled reassuringly. "I'm sure the baby will kick plenty over the next few months. He'll feel it soon enough."

Anna paced the castle the rest of the day, feeling too restless to nap, but not energetic enough to go to town and browse the stalls. She had shared the news of the baby's movement with practically everyone in the castle, and though she knew they shared her excitement, they could only care so much when it wasn't their child.

The red-haired princess found herself counting the hours, minutes, seconds until Kristoff was supposed to return. She was almost scared of how much she missed him when he wasn't beside her, even for a moment. Sighing softly, she pushed away from the window where she had been watching the main road and began the long journey back to her chambers. Having been up on her feet all day, they were getting rather sore, and sleep seemed like a logical option, though Anna was loath to admit it. She put a hand on her belly, willing the baby to start kicking again.

"Do you miss Daddy too?" she murmured, looking down to the lump that was her unborn child. "He'll be pretty upset if you don't kick for him. You were doing it all day, right? Are you being a naughty little boy already?"

"Who are you talking to?"

Anna yelped as a strong pair of arms wrapped themselves around her, engulfing her in the familiar scent of pine and goat milk soap.

"Kristoff!" Anna scolded, turning in his arms to give his chest a light slap. "Did you sneak up on me?"

"No sneaking was required," he chuckled. "You seemed pretty distracted…By yourself…In this huge hallway."

Anna wrinkled her nose teasingly. "I was having a civilized conversation with a certain baby in my belly."

Kristoff gave her stomach a poke, his brown eyes gleaming fondly. "You mean this one?"

"Yes." Anna stood on tiptoe to kiss him. "I missed you," she muttered against his lips.

"I missed you two more."

In one sudden movement, he had swooped Anna into his arms in a bridal carry, chuckling as she protested and pushed against his torso. "You don't have to _carry_ me -"

"Too bad. You need to get to bed."

Anna relented and snuggled into her husband's chest as he made his way to their chambers. "So, what did you do today, besides miss me so much?" asked Kristoff, kissing the top of her red head.

"Oh, not much," said Anna vaguely. "It's not so much what _I_ did…"

"Okay, I'll bite. Who did what?"

They had reached their chambers. Kristoff set Anna down gently on the bed and began kicking off his boots. Anna started tracing patterns on the bedspread, stalling slightly. "_Your _son seems determined to turn me into a human punching bag."

Kristoff, who had been in the middle of taking off his shirt, twisted in surprise and got his arms knotted together above his head. "Wait, what? You felt him move?"

Anna giggled as she watched her husband try to untangle himself. "Yup. He's been moving around all afternoon, but he stopped an hour or so ago."

Kristoff's arms dropped. "Figures."

Seeing her husband's crestfallen countenance, Anna began to pull her blouse up. "Maybe he'll do it again, Kristoff. Sometimes he responds when you nudge him first."

Kristoff blushed slightly at the sight of his wife's exposed stomach. _He is such a teenager_, Anna mused.

"Oh, stop being silly." She grabbed his large hand and placed it over the spot when their unborn son usually did his little kicks. Kristoff leaned down and pressed an ear to her belly, sighing contentedly.

"The baby makes a nice pillow," he murmured.

"I'm glad to know my hugeness is good for something."

"You're not huge. You're adorable. And you know how much I hate that word."

Anna rolled her eyes. "Flattery will get you…everywhere."

Before Kristoff could respond, he was quieted by a sudden nudge to his ear.

"Was that – he did it! He moved, Anna!" The childlike bliss on his face made Anna beam.

"See, I told you! He knows who his Daddy is!"

Kristoff was quiet for a moment, his ear still pressed against his wife's extended belly. "Daddy," he repeated, his tone laced with awe. "My little ice harvester is in there."

"Don't put pressure on him to be an ice harvester already!" scorned Anna, wrapping her arms protectively around her belly. "He can be whatever he wants – a sailor, a baker, a reindeer – "

"A reindeer? Maybe _your_ expectations are set too high," laughed Kristoff. He leaned up to kiss his wife's forehead. "I love you. And the little reindeer baby thing."

Anna smiled at him serenely, reaching out to push his blonde hair away from his face. "We love you too."


	3. Chapter 3

Anna felt a little scared when the first little contractions started. She felt _more_ frightened when she was finally told to go to the designated birthing chambers to endure the rest of her labor. However, she didn't experience real terror until she saw the royal guards pulling Kristoff forcefully from the room, his shouts filling the room as the midwives clicked their tongues impatiently.

"Wait – no – Kristoff!" Anna thrashed against the blankets, her frantic eyes filling with tears as the doors shut behind her husband. "_Where are you taking him_?"

"There hasn't been a man in the birthing chamber for centuries," sniffed one of midwives, looking scandalized as she pushed Anna back onto her pillow. "We aren't about to make an exception for the Prince Consort. We're sorry, princess."

"Where's Elsa?" Anna panted, clutching her swollen abdomen as another contraction made her body clench up. "She – she won't let you do that!"

"I'm afraid the midwives are in control of what happens here," said another one of the midwives as she dabbed Anna's forehead with a cool cloth. "You can do it perfectly without him, my lady; women have been doing it for centuries without their husbands!"

"But I don't want to!" Anna wailed. "I _can't_…" She let out a sob, tears overflowing from her blue eyes as the reality of the situation engulfed her. Kristoff was her rock, the reason she got up every morning; now she was going to have to go through childbirth without him. Heck, he probably knew than she did about the whole subject. He wouldn't let her read the graphically detailed books about babies and birth, knowing it would scare her, but he couldn't hide the horror in his own face as he browsed them. Anna hadn't been too familiar with physical pain whilst growing up. Castle life had been sheltered and carefully monitored; she had sprained her ankle once, but that was it. Now here she was, about to experience the most painful thing a woman could go through, and she had never felt more alone.

"KRISTOFF!"

"KRISTOFF!"

The sound of Anna's cry briefly halted Kristoff's wrestling match with the guards.

"Anna!" he choked back, giving the guards enough time to swoop their arms around his torso and push him further away from the door that hid Anna from view.

"I'm sorry, Sire, but you cannot go in!" the burly guard insisted. "It is forbidden!"

"I don't _care_ if it's forbidden," Kristoff growled, advancing once more towards the door, though only half-heartedly this time, as the number of guards had swiftly doubled. "My wife is in there!"

The guard's mouth twitched. "We understand that, Sire, but you must obey."

Kristoff pushed back from the throng of guards in defeat, running his hands through his hair agitatedly. He felt like he needed to punch a wall. After months of anticipating their baby's arrival, he wasn't allowed to help and support his wife as she brought the child into the world. He had no way of knowing what was going on. And that frightened him.

After what felt like hours, Elsa burst into the birthing chamber, her cheeks flushed and her hair windswept. She knelt by her sister, placing a cool hand to her forehead.

"I'm sorry," she breathed. "I returned as fast as I could."

"That's – okay," Anna panted, her chest heaving. "But I need – Kristoff – _wow_, this hurts."

"I know, honey," Elsa murmured, shooting a worried glance at the midwives, who were bustling around with different herbs and concoctions and clean rags. "Kristoff is right outside, though. You should see how many guards they have to keep him out." Anna smiled weakly. "He loves you, Anna. I love you, too. And the baby. Just…hang in there, alright?"

It was quiet for a few moments as Anna breathed through a particularly bad contraction. Elsa saw her sister's face redden with concentration, and then drain of color once the contraction was over.

"I'm scared," Anna whispered, and Elsa felt her heart break. Her baby sister was in pain, and there was nothing she could do to stop it. For once, she had no power.

Ten hours.

That's how long Kristoff paced, groaned and pulled strings from the carpet. Ten agonizingly long hours, punctuated with occasional wails from Anna that made his blood race. Ten hours of not knowing if his wife was okay, or even alive. Her screams were the only reassurance that she was still persevering.

Kristoff had skimmed through books on childbirth, and wished he could wash the images from his memory. It looked complicated, messy and dangerous, for both the mother and child. Feeling suddenly ill, Kristoff plopped himself against the wall and put his head between his legs. He couldn't take much more of the stressful anticipation. He peeked through his arms and noticed the guards looked pretty unfocused; their weapons rested against the wall, and their eyes seemed heavy. Maybe this was his final chance to get in that room.

Just as Kristoff started to shift his weight to his feet, he heard a cry. It wasn't Anna.

It was a baby's cry.

Kristoff could feel his heart stop and his mouth drop open as the suddenly indistinguishable voices of the guards hollered and offered their congratulations around him. He was a father. He flew to his feet, briefly forgetting how to walk as he faced the door that was his enemy. He half-ran, half-stumbled towards it, and this time, nobody tried to stop him.

He threw the doors open, and a midwife brushed past him, carrying a pile of bloody rags. The sight made Kristoff's knees buckle slightly, and he scanned the room hurriedly for his wife, fearing the worst –

Anna lay in the middle of the grand bed, her petite figure dwarfed by the mountain of pillows and blankets around her. Her chest was moving up and down, slowly but surely. Elsa got up slowly from the bedside and smiled at her brother-in-law. She whispered her congratulations and slipped quietly from the room. Kristoff saw Anna's eyes flutter open.

"K-Kristoff?"

He was at the bedside in a split second, his brown eyes frantically raking up and down her slender body.

"Anna, are you alright? Are you –"

"I have an introduction to make."

Anna shifted slightly, and an impossibly tiny bundle came into view. It wiggled slightly in her arms, and through her exhaustion, Anna smiled down at it. Kristoff leaned over, hesitating; he was too big to be around this precious being, he would surely squish it somehow –

"Kristoff, this is our son." Anna transferred the carefully swaddled bundle into Kristoff's strong arms. He felt his breath catch. It was a baby; a baby with a squished, red face and tiny little fists that pumped in the air. A few wisps of blonde hair poked out from beneath his tiny hat.

"He's not a reindeer," Anna murmured sleepily. Kristoff chuckled and leaned over to kiss her forehead tenderly.

"No, he's not. He's ours, Anna."

"Yeah. But I decided that you can have the next one."

"Deal."

**I hope you guys liked Chapter 3! I'm not sure if I like it or not. It's pretty late her and I felt like I had to update this story. There might be one or two more chapters with the baby if you guys want them. Reviews are much appreciated! **

**-Katie**

**(And yes, I already have a name for the wittle baby.)**


	4. Chapter 4

**Sorry for the wait! Also, please note the T rating… thanks :)**

"Don't you think we should wait until he's older?"

"Anker's already two months old, Anna. Bulda is going to kill me for making her wait this long."

Anna nervously readjusted the baby sling that she had tied around her torso and gave her husband a skeptical look. "Should a two-month-old be trekking up into the mountains?"

Kristoff shrugged. "Well, I was born in the mountains. In the middle of winter, no less. He'll be fine." He leaned down and kissed his son's feathery blond head. "Right, buddy?"

Anker responded by trying to stick his whole fist in his own mouth.

"Well, we should probably go while the sun is at its highest," said Anna, smiling fondly at the baby. "Is the sleigh ready?"

Kristoff nodded. "Yeah, I fixed it up this morning. Sven is really anxious to go for a sleigh ride."

As they approached the stables, Anna couldn't help but feel sorry for the reindeer. He had had almost no attention from either of them since the baby was born. She knew Sven could take care of himself, but the time between him and Kristoff was invaluable. Luckily, Sven loved the baby, and would groom its hair whenever he thought Anna wasn't looking. Anna scolded the reindeer at first, but upon seeing Anker's happy, gummy smile, she decided to let it slide.

The sleigh ride went smoothly; Sven was aware of just how precious the cargo was. He looked behind him frequently, eyes darting between Anna and the lump in her arms.

Kristoff chuckled. "They're fine, Sven. You're doing great."

As they pulled up near the clearing where the trolls resided, Anna felt anxious. Would the trolls want to hold the baby? Were their arms even long enough? What if they dropped him?

Kristoff hopped off the sleigh and held his arms out to take Anker from Anna, who was now shuffling uncomfortably on the seat. "Uh oh. I know that look," said Kristoff, his arms falling. "What's -"

"What if they want to hold the baby?" Anna blurted, hugging the baby closer to her chest. "I mean, can they even do that? They are made of rock, after all."

"They don't have to hold him, Anna, especially if you're not comfortable with it."

Anna nodded, but it was with reluctance that she surrendered Anker to Kristoff and stepped off the sleigh into the snow. Kristoff gave her a reassuringly smile as they stepped into the clearing. After tightening the blankets around his son's sleeping form, he cleared his throat loudly. "Um…hello? Bulda? It's Kristoff and Anna again, and we have – "

"KRISTOFF'S HOME!"

Within moments, the couple was surrounded by excited trolls, who quickly began stacking themselves in order to get a better look at the bundle in Kristoff's arms. Anna tried in vain to shush them, but it was too late – the commotion had awoken Anker, who made a mewing sound and kicked at his blankets fussily. A hush came over the clearing as the trolls took in the tiny squawking creature with sudden awe.

Anna laughed nervously and sidled up to her husband. "I told you this was a bad idea," she muttered as the cries intensified. Then -

"Which one of you is responsible for making my grandbaby cry?" Bulda had pushed her way through the crowd and was now perched on a rock near the flustered couple, glaring down at the rest of the trolls, who were now shuffling their stone feet guiltily.

She turned to Kristoff and beamed. "Let me see him, dear."

Glancing at Anna, Kristoff knelt down to give Bulda a closer look at the unhappy baby in his arms. Bulda smiled warmly as she took one of its tiny hands in hers.

"There's no need for tears, little one," she cooed, running a gentle finger down the baby's soft cheek. Immediately, the crying ceased, and parents and child were left looking bewildered.

"Guess he just needed a grandmother's touch!" announced Bulda proudly. Her face softened once more. "What's his name, loves?"

Anna smiled and addressed the entire clearing of trolls. "His name is Anker, and he's the newest Prince of Arendelle."

The announcement was followed by cheers, notably a lot softer than before.

"He's two months old already!" Bulda laughed. "When are you going to get started on the next one?"

Kristoff's choking and Anna's stuttering went unnoticed amidst the following bout of cheering and cat calls.

"You two make cute babies," gurgled a little troll near the front.

"Alright, it was nice seeing you guys!" said Kristoff, his voice cracking. "We'll just be on our way back to the castle, where people don't say creepy stuff out loud."

"Way ahead of you," muttered Anna beside him, and he heard her back up towards the sleigh.

"Okay, but don't come back until there's another baby! Life is a buffet; always go back for more!"

By this time Kristoff and Anna had already clambered into the sleigh and were shouting their goodbyes as Sven began to pull away.

"I'm glad that's over," Kristoff muttered as his mittened hands tugged on the reins. Anna giggled.

"What about that 'next one', hmmm?"

Kristoff groaned. "Not you, too!"

Anna was scooting awfully close. "Not such a bad idea, though, is it? It's just you and me up here…"

"Yeah, and Sven and our son, remember?" Kristoff choked. "Are you even remembering that whole ten-week rule thing?"

"It's been eight," Anna pouted.

"That's two less than ten, feistypants. Not happening."

Anna sat back with an exasperated sigh. "You're so cute when you're sensible."

"One of us has to be."

Anna leaned over to kiss her husband's cheek. "I love you, I guess."

"I guess I love you too, stinker."

**I found 'Anker' in a baby name book, and it means 'harvester' so I thought it was pretty fitting! Anyway, that's probably the end of this story. I may write some more Frozen one-shots in the future, so stay tuned! As always, reviews are much appreciated. **


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